A couple of weeks ago I met Stefan Engeseth, author of the recently published One. (There’s a free download of the first chapter there). One is Stefan’s riff on the future of marketing where the boundaries between brands and their customers become more permeable with customers seeing more and participating more in the creation of what some might call (slightly squirmily) “branded experiences”. I only had a brief chat with Stefan and realised how much work he has put into this book. For a serious guy, Stefan writes a very engaging book, full of wit and provocation, puncutated with great quotes, funny stories and punchy graphics. It is chock full of ooze.
Stefan says companies should worry less about being number one in their market and more about being one with their customers.
Try going to a (hair) salon and having your hair done without a mirror and you’ll understand how today’s customers feel when they have to live with the hairdos today’s brands force upon them.
I’m not very good at reading non-fiction but Stefan’s book gets an easy recommendation from me: it’s very easy to dip in and out, it delivers serious ideas with a sense of mischief and it makes me think. If I were a marketing director, it’s the sort of book I’d dish out to my colleagues on a Friday night and say, “Let’s talk about this on Monday.”
